Period 3: The Mongols Flashcards
Who was Genghis Khan?
Under his tremendous military and organizational skills, Genghis Khan unified the Mongol tribes in the early 1200s and set them on a path of expansion that would lead to the largest empire the world had ever seen.
How was the Mongol Empire unified?
Genghis Khan unified several nomadic tribes of Mongolia and led the Mongol invasion of China in 1234, which was the beginning of the enormous Mongolian conquests.
What happened after Genghis Khan died?
Genghis Khan’s followers broke into different groups called hordes, who elected a new Great Khan after Genghis and his successor. However, by the election of Kublai Khan, these hordes or Khanates were largely independent of central leadership.
What was the Golden Horde?
The Golden Horde conquered the region of modern-day Russia.
Which Mongol emperor ruled China?
Kublai Khan
What was the Pax Mongolica?
Mongols destroyed cities and were ruthless warriors, but once their domain was established, the empire was relatively peaceful. This peace is called the Pax Mongolica.
What were characteristics of the Mongol empire?
- exchanged goods, ideas, and cultures between regions
- Mongols were illiterate nomads before conquests and education reforms; eventually became assimilated into the cultures of the people they defeated
- focused on territory, infrastructure, and conquest rather than culture
What innovations did Genghis Khan bring about in the Mongol empire?
Genghis Khan established the first pony express and postal system and gave tax breaks to teachers and clerics within his empire.
Who was Timur Lang (Tamerlane)?
Timur Lang destroyed everything and massacred thousands of people in India and then left. The sultanate was destroyed, but after Timur Lang returned to his capital in Samarkand, the Mongols pulled out as well, and a few years later the sultanate was restored.
What were characteristics of the Mongol warriors?
- highly organized and mobile
- Mongol horsemen could cover about 90 miles/day (compared to the Romans who could cover about 25 miles/day)
- bows were designed to be launched from horseback and had a range of 300 yards
- armies were divided into units which were further separated into light and heavy cavalries and scouting units
- Genghis Khan punished traitors swiftly and awarded the courageous generously
- had spies who scouted enemies before battle
What were ways in which Mongols diffused culture?
- most Mongols became Muslim in Persia
- in China, Kublai Khan (grandson of Genghis Khan) dismissed the Confucian scholars, forbade marriage between Mongols and Chinese, and wouldn’t allow the Chinese to learn the Mongol language (allowing the Chinese to keep their identity and kick the Mongols out in 1368)
What happened to Russia under the Mongol empire?
Russia, which was conquered by the Golden Horde and treated as a vassal state, didn’t unify or culturally develop as quickly as its European neighbors to the west.
